Putin: Suspension of Gazprom deliveries to Ukraine may create difficulties for European supplies

Feb 25, 2015

Interfax

Interfax

The advance made by the Ukrainian side for deliveries of Russian natural gas will be sufficient for three to four days after which Gazprom, in compliance with the contract will suspend deliveries which can pose a threat to the transit of Russian gas to Europe, President Vladimir Putin has said.

The advance made by the Ukrainian side for deliveries of Russian natural gas will be sufficient for three to four days after which Gazprom, in compliance with the contract will suspend deliveries which can pose a threat to the transit of Russian gas to Europe, President Vladimir Putin has said.

"The prepayment that was made by the Ukrainian side is enough for gas deliveries for three to four days. If there is no prepayment, Gazprom in compliance with this contract and supplement to it will suspend deliveries," he said at a press conference following his talks with President of Cyprus Nikos Anastasiadis answering a question from Interfax.

"Naturally this can create a certain threat to transit to Europe to our European partners," he added.

Russian president warned that it depends on Ukraine's "financial discipline" whether or not Russia will keep supplying the
neighboring country with natural gas.

"We hope that things won't get as far
as extreme measures and that gas supply won't be interrupted, but this
doesn't depend on us alone, it depends on the financial discipline of our
Ukrainian partners," Putin told a news conference in reference to
Ukraine's commitment to make advance payments for its gas purchases.

Russia's Gazprom and Energy Ministry "are taking energetic measures not only to inform our European partners
about this problem but also to get them involved in trying to solve it,"
he said.

Said Putin, cutting gas
supplies to the self-proclaimed Donetsk
and Lugansk republics against the backdrop of the humanitarian crisis in these
regions is reminiscent of genocide.

"I know that around four million people
live there. Imagine all these people finding themselves without gas supplies in
winter. Not only is there famine there - the OSCE (Organization for Security
and Co-operation in Europe) has already
acknowledged a humanitarian disaster there - now they are cut off gas supplies.
What does this look like? This already has a whiff of genocide," president
told.

"I would like the Energy Ministry and Gazprom to prepare proposals
on the provision of humanitarian aid in the form of gas supply to these
regions if no actions to supply gas using the usual scheme are taken,"
Medvedev told the Russian government.